Spare Oom and Other Things

Hi there.

Today I have been listing and researching.  I feel like such a grown up.  Yesterday I researched "hard to kill household plants."  Ok, maybe not a good gardener still, but a grown up, nonetheless.

Since I haven't been given my apartment spending allowance yet, I've been organizing my ideas and coming up with a list of things that I am certain I want to do.  (Some projects still need brainstorming.) 

I've decided, rather than a couple decent sized canvases, or one large one, to do a bunch of small canvases above our couch.  So, today I looked up a wholesale canvas website.  I can get ten, 8x10 canvases for about thirty dollars after shipping and handling.  Didn't seem too shabby to me.  I think the four good sized canvases I got for a steal at Michael's will end up in our room and the spare room.  (Every time I say the spare room I think of Mr. Tumnus saying, "Lucy, from the land of Spare Oom.")

 I also researched spray paint colors.  You're thinking this is the life, right?  I looked for burgundies for our room.  ( I have a bedside table and a cabinet I'm thinking of transforming.)  I also looked for various colors to use as accents in our living room.  I'm still having the most trouble with this room.  However, based on the color schemes I had looked up on Pinterest, I thought these pictures I took the other day might go well.  Yesterday I researched adhering photos to canvas to make them look almost painted on... Might just have to try that out with these pictures.

 

Like I said, I'm thinking about arranging either a cluster, or two rows of five canvases above the couch, so I will have lots of options to fill in with either transferred photos or paintings.  Ideas?

Oh, another project I have in the works is changing up the pillows we got with our couch.  Remember these bright red things?

 

Well, I've decided they just won't do for me on the couches.  They will, however, be great in our room with the help of these great napkins I received last year!

 

 

I love the colors of these napkins!  But, we just don't use cloth napkins unfortunately.  They are just about the perfect size for covering two of those pillows though.  The beige, taupe, and golden yellow already go perfect in our room, and the orange and deep red will be the perfect start to adding those colors as accents like I've decided I want.  I'm going to cover two of the pillows, and then choose another complementary fabric to cover the other one.

Unfortunately, we do not have enough quarters lying around the apartment for me to do a load of laundry at the moment, and I want to wash them before I start this project.  Soon! 

 

So, life...  Last night, as Jered and I were getting ready to fall asleep, my husband prayed for me.  He first thanked God for how He has provided for us, the people He has placed in our lives to help us in this transition, and all the people He has surrounded us with.  We have much to be thankful for.  So much.  I cried.  Naturally. 

For me, he prayed that God would help me find a job.  Not just a job, but a position that I would love.  One that would start a career for me.  I cried more.  Naturally.  Partly because I'm getting emotional about finding one, and mostly because I have a good husband who wants me to not just find something to help us save money, but something that will fulfill me.  Something special that God has planned.

Whew! - For real, friend!  I am emotional these days.  I can barely see my screen right now because of the blurriness.  Ridiculous!

Well, the growling in my stomach is telling me it's time to eat, so I will talk to you later!

Aim

Celebrating Keeping Each Other Alive for a Year

Hi friend.

Did I tell you that Jered had to work on our anniversary?  It ended up being ok.  Sommmebodyyyy thought church started 45 minutes later than it actually did, so rather than walk in ridiculously late, we played hooky and went out for a delicious brunch.  I was going to have our waitress take a picture of us, but I was too embarrassed.

We actually celebrated our anniversary yesterday.  First, we went for a walk.  It's a little different here than it is in Chicago.

 

 

 

 

 

It was a beautiful day.  We had fun seeing little creatures.  I was hoping to see the deer that crossed our path, not 25 feet in front of us, last week, but she wasn't to be seen.  We tried some mulberries and explored along the lake and had a grand time.

Then, in true sentimental fashion, we had Burger King for lunch because that's what we had on our wedding night.  (In case you don't know the story, the abridged version is this:  Jered and I ate almost nothing all day, and by the time we were on our way to Peoria, we realized he had forgotten his wallet in Canton.  So a very hungry, arriving at grumpy couple was rescued by some Burger King chicken tenders after we picked up his wallet, therefore driving back to Peoria in a happy, proper newlywed state.)

Our afternoon was spent buying wedding presents.  For us.  Yes, that's correct.  We still had some Bed, Bath, and Beyond gift cards, so we figured this was a great time to spend them!  We expanded our colors a bit with our new hot pads and oven mitt. (Crazy the things you can go without for a year, isn't it?)  We also got a new spatula that will play nice with our non-stick pans.  Jered, of course, doesn't need it anymore because he's already mastered flipping his eggs without one.  I, however, am not that skilled.  Although, I am definitely in love with our non-stick cookware. 

 

We also got these bins to organize our bathroom closet.  It was a bit cluttered for my taste, but this shaped things right up.  

 

We topped our anniversary evening off with a delicious dinner at Raccoon River Brewery, which we realized we had actually been to before when we visited Des Moines, although we hadn't had dinner that time.  It was fantastic.  Thanks to Jake and Molly for the gift card!  We felt like we were on our honeymoon again.  If you want to see the difference a year made, check this out.

 

We spent part of our dinner discussing how we plan to treat ourselves to another trip to Cancun after we pay off our school loans.  Also- not that you really care, but that's a delectable turkey burger with pepper jack cheese and guacamole, that I am eating the second half of at this very moment.  Lovely day, right?  Well, in case you are wondering, we've decided that we kind of really like each other and think we'll give another year a go.  

Here are a few other things going on around our place:

Katie!  Your bed has arrived!  This thing is great!  The arms/side pillows, and the back are all adjustable for maximum comfort.  So nice!  

 

And doesn't the owl bookend go well here?  I felt it was fitting because it's holding up Jered's wilderness books.  Thanks for splitting the set with me!

 

Well, friend, that's about it for now. 

Until next time!

Aim

Marriage: We are now Second Years

Warning: Don’t read this if you have a weak stomach when it comes to sappy shenanigans.

To my husband of one year,

I love you.  Would you just look at this?  Can you believe it’s been a year?  It’s surreal, right?  Just like our wedding day.  You know, there were times that I thought the wedding would never get here, and now it’s a year since.

I will always love reminiscing about that day.  About getting ready in the church with my bridesmaids.  Mary Beth and Ashley helping me with my makeup.  Mallory putting together a dismissal soundtrack for me at the last minute.  Feeling so uncomfortable in front of the camera.  Seeing my dad for the first time in my dress.  Having the women of my life come in to see me before things got started.  Sharing our first journal entries with each other on opposite sides of the wall.  My eyes filling with tears when Jessa told me how you started to cry during that time.  Passing you my ring.  Seeing our precious flower girls and ring bearers.  Becoming downright giddy as the time drew nearer.  Jumping up and down in my big dress because I wanted the ceremony to get started.  Hearing Return of the King and the Tangled soundtrack playing while waiting in the hall.  Having Margo and my bridesmaids praying over me before I walked down the aisle.  Peeking around the corner and waving to people.  Hearing Legends of the Fall start to play as our bridal party entered the sanctuary.  Gripping my dad’s arm as we prepared to meet you.

Seeing you.  Walking towards you.  Seeing you stand on the sides of your feet, balling up your fists, and attempting to hold back tears.  Excitedly putting your ring on your finger and saying our vows.  Having you kiss me as my husband for the first time.

I wish that I had carried my own camera with me that day, so that I could have captured moments I saw throughout the day.  To see my point of view again.

At this time a year ago, we were settling into our reception, probably getting ready to listen to Jeremy and Katie’s toasts.  I nestled into your arm as we listened and thought, “This is right where I belong.”

And then we danced the night away, and I couldn’t keep my eyes off of you and your mad dance moves.  (Throughout this year of wedded bliss, I have endlessly enjoyed watching you dance around the apartment- in case you wonder if I still notice your moves.  I think each time you dance, I love you a little more.)  

I think it was during your mother-son dance when Jacob came to sit by me.  He asked me what I was most looking forward to about being married.  My answer was, “Not having to say goodbye anymore.”  Long distance was rough.  I hated it.  But then I think it helped us get to where we needed to be.

What about this year?  Well, dear husband, I’ve loved it.  I’m so glad we were able to start it off with a spectacular week in Cancun.  (When can we go back?)  Knowing that we were heading into a potentially tough year, with you in school, and me, looking for work, it was fantastic to start it off with a short time of sheer bliss and nothing encroaching on our time together.

I can see why people say the first year is the hardest.  How many times did we realize we had silly expectations for what this was going to be like?  Ok, it was probably more this girl that you married, who had the silly expectations.  However, if that’s the hardest, then I think we’re golden.

Jered, I’ve loved waking up to your morning breath, trying to make decent food for you to eat, being a team, not having to say goodbye to you, watching you succeed in your studies, seeing you get your first “adult” job, finding what you want to do with your life, renting dollar movies for dates, learning the ins and outs of the city with you, starting a completely new life at your side, talking about the future, hearing you improve on the harmonica, spending holidays with you, making and filling our first stockings together, going to sleep with your blasted fan blowing in my face, and so much more.

I can’t wait to see what this next year will bring.  It’s exciting, no?  I mean, look at how much has changed this year.  Who knows where we will be a year from now.  I’m excited to find out.

 I have so much more to tell you, husband.  So much more to thank you for.  So much more to dream about.  My scattered brain will have to put it into writing some other time.

I hope my letter didn’t embarrass you too much.  If it did… too bad.  Occupational hazard of being my husband.  

So, until next time you are on the receiving end of my writing, I love you.  Thank you for a wonderfully memorable first year.

Love,

Aimee

Diary of a Lazy Girl

Dear friend,

I have found myself being less productive this week.  I have also found a number of excuses for my laziness.

Excuse 1: I don't have the money to spend on projects yet.

Excuse 2: I was sick on Tuesday. (I feel this one is pretty valid.)

Excuse 3: The sun wasn't out in the afternoon, so it made a great day to watch a movie.

Excuse 4: I'm recuperating from Tuesday.

Excuse 5: Jered worked days, so I slept in and didn't miss any time with him.

Anyway- you get the idea.  Lame.

I haven't been a complete bum though...

I reorganized our cupboards after using our dishwasher for the first time on our new dishes and introducing them to the kitchen.  I rearranged things because I'm very indecisive.  I vacuumed.  I tried to organize the bathroom closet.  I ironed a bunch of Jered's work shirts.

I made a delicious dinner Monday night... Jered even said so, and he said this time he meant it.

 

Well, I don't have a great deal to share with you today.  We did have a nice, albeit, short time with my family this weekend.  And they spoiled us, as per usual. 

I was also able to bring several of our wedding gifts back that we hadn't had the opportunity to use yet.  (See our lovely dishes above?  And our real set of silverware?)  That was exciting for this girl.

I don't know about you, but I feel as though this letter is quite disjointed.  It may or may not be due to the fact that I can't seem to make my eyes focus on the computer screen at the moment.  And so, I think I will take my leave for now.  It's time to watch the "particular proclivity for pyrotechnics."

Later,

Aim

Contentment

Hi!

Gosh- I can't believe it's after 6 already!  This day has flown by.  We are officially renters of our apartment.  Signed about a billion papers first thing this morning.  Then- there's nothing that can make you feel worse about your workout accomplishments than working out with a Flinkman boy.  Jered went jogging with me today.  Booo.  "I'm so out of shape," he says and then runs way faster than me and just goes on forever without stopping.

So how am I spending my afternoon without him?  Well, first I danced and sang unashamedly in my closet while I picked out my clothes for the weekend.  I had to put Blurred Lines on repeat a couple times.  (I also have to mention that I liked it waaay before it got so popular.)

I just came across this beauty too.  Obviously, I had to share it.  Please enjoy how adorable my husband was.  I don't get these car serenades as often now.  He's a serious grown up these days.  Well, I guess I get harmonica songs now...  Anyway, enjoy!

Ok, as warned about, here are more pictures.  Everything's coming along slowly, but surely.  Moving around alot trying to find the best set ups.

 

Those were my projects last night.  Looking forward to putting a futon in the spare room and dressing up everything a little after deciding on colors and what we want in each room...

You know, the message on Sunday was all about being content with what God has given you at this very moment.  It really is unbelievable- the speed at which we go from being thrilled, to "how can we improve this?"  

I'm a little bit stuck in the middle, I think.  I am still completely thrilled with what we have right now, but at the same time, I am constantly planning what we should put on our "save up for" list, what we need to do to make it look better in here, and what things we need to get.  That thought process can be enervating. 

The silly thing is that my favorite moments since we've been here so far, have been the moments when we're getting ready to go to bed and have stayed up later than normal just talking.  In the dark.  In those moments, it's just the two of us.  We can't see any of our belongings.  We can't see the bare walls, or the hand-me-down pieces we have.  

It's just the relationship God's cultivated in us.  In those moments, when I'm talking with my husband, just enjoying his thoughts, my vitality is restored.  My love for him grows stronger, and I find more peace with what we have.  (Not that I'm not more than happy with what we have right now- I am so in love with our place.  I just know that we both have that tendency to dream about what comes next.)

And all of that is not to say that I won't continue to pester you with apartment updates.  Sorry- you're not getting out of it that easily!

Well, I should get packing...  Jered and I are pulling a late night drive tonight!  Here's hoping we have a little less exciting adventure than last Saturday!

Bye!

Aim

Ready to Rest

Good evening, dear friend.

Whew! What a day.  Jered and I woke up early to pick up our new furniture.  Then we had to unload it.  I didn't mention that part to you earlier...

Remember when I told you how it would be best for us if we had other guys to help us move?  How we would have that FRIENDS "pivot" moment, followed by the "SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP!" moment? Well, today, it was just Jered and me bringing the couches into the apartment...  I think the good thing was that we both knew it could potentially get ugly.

Before we started to take the couch out of the vehicle, I took my husband by the arm, told him I loved him, and gave him a kiss.  We weren't halfway up the stairs, and I was audibly losing control of my temper.  Fast.

Luckily, I'm blessed with a patient husband.  Luckily, on our second trip up the stairs with the love seat, a neighbor happened to be walking down the hall, and although I don't think he spoke much English, if any, he stepped right up and took my place, leaving me to open the doors for them.  I think that man might have been an angel! Haha. 

I'm relieved to tell you that Jered and I are still happily married after getting the furniture in place.

My afternoon solo has gone by much more quickly today.  I started it off with looking up some color schemes for the apartment.  As I said, the green on the couches isn't really my favorite look- especially with bright red pillows.  Well, obviously, pillows are a little easier to replace than the color of the couches, so I started looking for color schemes with the dark green in them.  I found these on pinterest:

 

What do you think?  I'm not sure which one I like best, but I can say that I was a little more excited about the color when I found these.  I would say the couches are closest to the green in the bottom sample, but I still think the other schemes could work with them...

So, as I mentioned before, we were planning on moving that reddish couch to the bedroom for reading.  It was a great idea- I'm lounging comfortably on it at this very moment.  So then I started looking for color schemes for our room that would include a dark reddish/rust color.  I was really pleased to find some of these looks on pinterest:

The color in the bottom sample is almost exactly the same as the couch.  I wonder if I'd be able to use red with that color?  I love the light blue/teal in there too.  I like the splash of cool in such a warm scheme.  I like the idea of having the red to spice it up a bit...

Ok- so that's all for apartment talk today.

I found a great route to do my sprinting intervals today.  It's the first time I've tried them off the treadmill.  I used my phone's stopwatch as my timer, and I think I was actually able to push myself harder than I do on the treadmill.  I was surprised because I always felt like I needed the treadmill to keep me going, but I think that not feeling like I was in an enclosed space allowed me to go full out in my sprints.

Afterwards, I made a bee line to the pool before going home.  Woo- it was chilly!  But it sure cooled off my legs in a hurry.

This evening I enjoyed getting out and going to a church picnic!  It was nice to meet some new people and to spend time with Molly, and Jake, and Nate. 

Oh- I lied.  About the apartment talk, that is.  I just rearranged our room so that there's space for the couch.  I was worried it would be too cramped now, but it still feels quite spacious.  I also went through the spare room and organized and cleared up the room.  I'll have some photos for you later.  

Well, I am nursing a headache now.  I've downed two large water bottles in the last hour or so, and as a last resort, had to take an Excedrin to try and knock it out.  Probably won't be able to sleep tonight.  I promise, even if I'm awake all night, I will not write a third letter today!  I promise to at least wait until tomorrow.

Now I'm going to grab a small snack and wait for Jered to get home.  (You should have seen him when he left for work... That boy cleans up real nice! Enter wolf whistle here.)

Good night!

Aim

New Addition

Hey there!

Check out our new steal! 

 

We got the couch, love seat, coffee table, and the throw pillows for $125!  Can you believe it?  Jered found them yesterday on craigslist, and I spent the afternoon frantically trying to work things out so we could get them before someone else.  

The couches are super comfortable, although the color is not my favorite.  And the pillows are going to get changed out.  Not big on the Christmas colors.  But, that's just me being picky.  

Anyway- Jered will make fun of me for posting this so soon, especially since he hasn't even returned the vehicle we borrowed to pick them up yet.  (Thanks Bob and Cheryl!!!)  I just had to share because I'm so, so, so excited about it- probably the best deal I've ever gotten on anything.

Hope you're having as great a day as we are!

Aim